Sominex 20mg Tablets

Both are sedating antihistamines, but they are different drugs. Nytol contains diphenhydramine; Sominex contains promethazine, which is longer-acting. That makes Sominex more useful if you wake during the night rather than struggle to drop off, but it also means you are more likely to feel groggy the next morning. Sominex is usually the second choice, for when diphenhydramine has not suited you or has stopped working.

Yes, within limits. The licence allows the tablet to be taken up to one hour after going to bed if sleep is still difficult. Beyond that you risk being drowsy well into the next morning, so it is better to skip the dose than to take it in the small hours.

More likely than with Nytol, because promethazine lasts longer. Only take it when you have a full night ahead, at least eight hours, and do not drive or use machinery the next day if you feel at all slowed down.

No. Alcohol and promethazine both depress the nervous system, and together they make drowsiness, poor coordination and slowed breathing considerably worse. Alcohol also worsens sleep quality on its own, so it works against what you are trying to achieve.

Promethazine is not addictive in the way that sleeping tablets such as zopiclone or diazepam are. What does happen is tolerance: the body adjusts within days and the same dose stops working as well. That is the reason for the 7-day limit, not a risk of dependence.

If your sleep has not settled after a week, a longer course is not the answer. Persistent poor sleep is usually driven by something else, such as stress, pain, low mood, an unhelpful sleep routine, or a condition like sleep apnoea. For insomnia lasting three months or more, NICE recommends a talking therapy called CBT-I ahead of any medicine. Speak to your GP, or contact our pharmacy team.